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FRED'S
BOAT SHOP (Page 2 of 7)
According to Fred's obituary, he was the son of Lithuanian immigrants
and served his country in England, France, and Germany as a member of
the U.S. Army during WWII. His love of boats started with building a
small sailboat as a teenager and continued after the war with an
apprenticeship at Graves Boat Yard in Marblehead courtesy of the G.I.
Bill. Deb added, "My father told me that he carried a copy of Howard
Chapelle's book Boatbuilding through Europe as a soldier in WWII,
nourishing his dream of becoming a professional boat builder. He bought
the site of the Boat Yard soon after his return to civilian life and
built the current masonry building at 10 Franklin Street at that time.
In the late 1960s, the Boat Yard doubled in size when my father bought
the house next door. The house was gutted and was rented for use as an
auto shop for several years during the 1970s."
Having grown up in boatyard -- very much like Bone Yard Boats founder
Ginger Martus -- I asked Deb to describe what it was like: "The Boat
Yard's system for moving boats has remained essentially the same since
it was first built. A 1950's Ford Falcon engine powers both the marine
railway and the capstan that applies force to ropes wrapped around it.
Boats are moved using blocks and ropes attached to the boat cradles and
to the "deadmen" strategically placed around the yard. Originally, the
wooden skids on which the boat cradles slid were just buried in the
ground, but around 1970, my father (with my assistance) poured cement
forms in the ground, with embedded bolts for attaching wooden skids.
This used far less wood and the skids were much more stable.
(Story continued
on page 3.)
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KNOW OF A BOAT
THAT NEEDS SAVING?
TELL BONE
YARD BOATS!
LOOKING
FOR A PROJECT BOAT?
YOU'VE
COME TO THE RIGHT PLACE!
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